Selecting the right Microphone
Although hardware is but one of many factors which contribute to achieving high levels of accuracy with speech recognition software, there is no questions that when your dictation style and pc are already at their best, choosing a higher quality microphone can extend your accuracy. There are, needless to say, many directions you can follow in upgrading from the microphone that came with your software. I offer these general suggestions in order to get you started. They intended to be “quick recommendations”
Looking for an inexpensive upgrade from the microphone that came with Dragon? Although there are many choices, we suggest the following, in decreasing order of preference:
Radio Shack “Sennheiser Knockoff”: this is an older version of a microphone that Radio Shack marketed and which emulated the more expensive Sennheiser ME3. Interestingly, though, while only about a quarter of the price, it is 95% the microphone of the real ME3. Don’t mistake this for the similarly appearing microphone in Radio Shack stores today. A couple of years back they changed the manufacture of the product and the ones in the stores are not good with speech recognition software. I strongly recommend that you purchase this microphone from a speech recognition dealer such as Speech Recognition Solutions or Knowbrainer.- Any of the mid-range Andrea or VXI microphones, including the ANC-700, ANC-750, and NC-181 and NC-185 series microphones and the VXI TalkPro series (TalkPro Express, TalkPro, and Talkpro USB models).
Looking for an extremely high quality headset microphone? Consider any of the following:
Sennheiser ME3: This has long been the microphone to which we compare all others. It truly sets the standard for both accuracy and external noise rejection. This microphone does not include speakers, so it leaves both ears free. I strongly recommend purchasing the ME3 in combination with a USB adapter since it’s wired a bit differently than most microphones and isn’t compatible with all sound cards.- Any of the UmeVoice “theBoom” mics. These all include the same high quality microphone element and are similar to the Sennheiser ME3 in terms of accuracy and noise cancelation. The only problem with these mics is that they are a bit on the fragile side. Although UmeVoice has a released a more rugged “Pro” series, these are rediculously expensive and (in our opinion) uncomfortable.
Looking for a wireless headset microphone? In my opinion the best performing wireless microphone is the Sennheiser BW900. This microphone has the added advantage of being useable with your wired telephone. In order to use it with both the phone and computer, you’ll need to get it with a switching device, such as the USB or Analog version of the Zoom Switch. Sennheiser makes an optional headband adapter which allows the BW900 headpiece to mount like a traditional headset microphone – this is a recommend option, both for comfort and for stability.
Looking for desk-mounted microphone? We have two suggestions in this regard
- The SpeechWare 2-in-1 (analog) and 6-in-1 (USB) microphones are our favorite “portable” desktop microphones. They have a reasonably long boom and don’t take up too much real estate on your desk. The 6-in-1 version has the option of adding a foot pedal for use in toggling the microphone off and on, and also has a built in speaker which makes it a good microphone for on-line telephony. Both provide excellent results with speech recognition.
- If you want a truly deluxe desktop microphone and want to spend LESS money than you would on the Speechware 6-in-1, consider getting one of the hand-held Samson mics such as the Q1U (our favorite since it has a built in sound card and connects to your pc via USB) or Q7 and combine it with the balanced arm microphone stand. With the set up, you can mount the arm to an edge of your desk or work surface and easily move the microphone in the direction of your head when you want to use it. A unique characteristic of both the Q7 and Q1U is that once you’ve run the audio set-up wizard at close range (an inch or two from your mouth), it will actually pick up your voice and do a great job with speech recognition software at distance up to 12-14 inches.
Looking for a hand-held microphone? We suggest you consider 2 products.
The Dictaphone PowerMic II is our personal favorite, both because of it accuracy and noise cancelation qualities, but even moreso because of it’s very tight integrationwith Dragon Medical. It has a series of programmable buttons which can accomplish a variety of tasks when used with Dragon. It interfaces via USB and has an 8 ft or so long cord. Please note that this microphone does not enjoy full integration with non-medical versions of Dragon.- The Philips SpeechMike. Philips makes both a wired and wireless version of the SpeechMike. The wireless version (the SpeechMike Air) was released late in 2009 and is expensive but highly functional. The only complaint we have with these microphones is that they are not particuarly good with external noise rejection. In louder environments we recommend the Dictaphone PowerMic II. For more information on this microphone, please see our review on this site.
For more detailed information on the many microphones that work well with speech recognition software, please visit the Microphone Selection Guide at the Speech Recognition Solution’s on-line store.
Glad to see someone final admits the Boom mic is uncomfortable. I use speech recognition software daily and was looking for the best microphone for any cost. Purchased the Boom mic and VERY uncomfortable made for someone with a very small head. Would be torture to wear all day.
I’m not sure which theBoom microphone you’re referring to, but I agree that the headset versions (“O” and “C”) are on the small side, particularly the “c”. UmeVoice (theBoom) mics contain an extremely high quality microphone element, but they tend to be small, fragile, and are packaged with absolutely no instructions, warranty information, etc. Thanks for posting your comment. Jon
Will a better quality microphone make much diference to the accuracy of M/S Word 2003 in-built voice recognition facility?
Upgrading to a better microphone may lead to some improvement, particularly if you are currently using an inexpensive microphone or if you have lots of contaminating noise. A high quality microphone has a microphone element which is both highly accurate and also very noise canceling. But keep in mind that there are other factors which affect accuracy, most notably your dictation style. Enunciating carefully is the most critical requirement. Since continuous speech recognition involve algorithms that make decisions on any given word based on preceeding and subsequent words, it is important to speak in phrases or complete sentences, rather than one word at a time. A final factor is matching the vocabulary to the type of speech you are using. The general vocabulary in the microsoft product may not be good for specialized purposes such as medical, legal, or other technical dictation. This is one reason to consider purchasing one of the specialty versions of Dragon if your dictation is in any way specialized. I hope this is helpful. Jon
We develop applications using Nuance’s VoCon3200 speech recogntion engine on Windows Mobile handheld devices and we need to be able to use a monaural blue tooth headset in a noisy enviromnent such as a supermarket or a distribution center. Any suggestions?
In my opinion, the key to good performance of a Bluetooth microphone with speech recognition is using a microphone with a full size mic boom and a noise canceling element. A cost effective solution is the VXI Xpressway. This pairs easily with any bluetooth device and offers a microphone element that is reasonably good in terms of rejecting external noise. You can see this at: http://www.speechrecsolutions.com/microphones_vxi.htm#xpressway Although this microphone has 3 mounting methods (ear only, around the back of the head, and typical over the head methods) we consider the over-the-head mechanism to be the only one which is particuarly well designed and suitable for long term comfort. I hope this information is helpful.
Radio Shack “Sennheiser Knock off”
I have recently purchased this microphone from you and, as you say, the performance is very good – but only if the microphone is correctly placed with respect to the mouth.
It is almost impossible to maintain correct placement because the boom is too long. If I have the microphone in front of my mouth I constantly get extra words which are in fact breath noises.
It is very difficult to get it at the side of a mouth because the boom is so long and will not stay bent to provide the correct positioning.
Have you any suggestions?
David
The long boom is an unfortunate design issue with the Radio Shack “ME3 Knockoff”. In my experience if your head shape is such that you can’t keep the boom from sitting right in front of your mouth, it’s simply not a microphone that will work for you. It’s too bad, because it is otherwise such a great product for the money.
Our solution for an EHR is to use tablet PCs with Nuance Dragon. The tablet has built in microphone but accuracy is only fair. The tablet is Bluetooth enabled. Is there a simple, handheld microphone that will Bluetooth in to the tablet? Most of the solutions I’ve seen seem to require using a receiver connected to a stationary PC via USB connection.
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Hi I need a microphone to use with dragon naturally speaking that is compatible with 32 bit windows 7. I am in the UK can any one advise?
Virtually any commonly used pc microphone and essentially every microphone sold on my site will work with Windows 7, both the 32 and 64 bit versions. Is there a particular type of microphone you are seeking? Perhaps I could give you some more specific recommendations …. Jon
Sorry about the late reply to your post. You might want to look into the VXI Xpressway. This is a simple Bluetooth microphone with 3 different mounting methods and which is amazing accurate and noise canceling at a very sane price. You can see it at: http://www.speechrecsolutions.com/microphones_vxi.htm#xpressway Best of luck. Jon